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Reinvent Your Barbershop's Retail Space

Thursday, February 8, 2018 - 10:16 am

Ideally, experts say that 20 percent of all salon revenue should come from retail. However, this is not the norm. “Finding someone who is at a standard of 20 percent retail to service dollars sales ratio is like finding a unicorn!” says 18.21 Man Made Grooming cofounder Aston LaFon. “The Professional Beauty Association and industry statistics report that the average retail percentage hover at around six percent. That’s a pretty big disconnect. And many salons don’t even measure these numbers.”

So while boosting your in-salon retail seems like a smart move, it’s tough—especially given how easy (and sometimes cheaper) online product shopping can be. That’s when a little creativity and vendor support comes in. For instance, 18.21 makes the most of its Prohibition-era packaging to help salons and barbershops move more product. They’ve packaged small quantities of Man Made Wash, which normally comes in a whiskey flask, into small, foil-packed “shots” for customers to use later. Not only that, but the packets double as discount coupons. “Men return the empty packets to get a percentage off the purchase of a full size,” LaFon says.